


Stay Another Hour

by ikuzonos



Series: The Friends We Used to Know [6]
Category: Dangan Ronpa, New Dangan Ronpa V3: Everyone's New Semester of Killing
Genre: Alternate Universe, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Multi, NDRV3 Spoilers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-14
Updated: 2017-02-14
Packaged: 2018-09-24 07:23:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,021
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9710918
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ikuzonos/pseuds/ikuzonos
Summary: It’s been nearly five months since the game ended, and six of them are still asleep. Saihara clutches his fist tightly, and tries not to think about his uncle, his uncle who willingly let him sign up for a reality show where he could havedied.Recovery is slow, but possible.[Major Endgame NDRV3 Spoilers.]





	

The conference room where group therapy is usually held smells like avocados. 

As far as Saihara can tell, nobody likes them that much, so it’s unlikely to be coming from a person in the room. He tries to brush it off, but the scent lingers. 

(Maybe it's a sign that Amami is going to wake up soon. Saihara wishes that he could kick the part of his brain that came up with that thought.)

Shirogane still hasn't come to a session, even though she's been out of the hospital for three weeks now. It's as if she's decided that she won't be interacting with anyone, unless they come to her. 

Saihara thinks that it's better that way. 

The psychologist knocks on the table a few times, forcibly grabbing their attention. She gives them all her million dollar smile, and Saihara grimaces. 

“I have a little exercise for you all!” she says, “I want each of you to tell me one interesting fact about your best friend!”

Angie is the only person in the room who doesn’t tense up instantly.

Saihara’s mind begins racing instantly. There are two people in the entire world that he could consider his best friend -  _ maybe _ three. One of them is sitting on Hoshi’s other side, tapping his fingers wildly on the table, and the other is still in the pods, still deep in her coma.

Angie waves her arms in the air. When the psychologist points to her, she says, “Angie’s best friend is a mage! Angie thinks that she’s super cool!”

Himiko smiles, but her shoulders go even tenser at the same time.

(None of their talents are real, and Saihara always forgets this. Part of him is glad he’s not the only one, and the rest of him feels ill.)

Himiko goes next, then Gonta. It goes all the way around the table, but Saihara stops paying attention. His mind is too busy focusing on everything else. He doesn’t snap out of it until he hears Hoshi’s deep voice from next to him.

“She was the only one who would eat my cooking for years,” he says vaguely, but Saihara knows who he’s talking about.

He’s up now, and Saihara awkwardly clears his throat. He searches desperately for a harmless memory, and eventually settles on a simple one from a long time ago.

“When we were twelve, she saved me from being beat up by a duck,” Saihara says, chuckling quietly. He can still remember it, remember the fear coursing through his body as the cacophonous quacking drew closer to him.

Kaito splutters, “How did you almost get beat up by a  _ duck?” _

Saihara looks away awkwardly, “We went to a farm, and the ducks were more violent than I thought.”

He remembers her running after the duck at top speed, her pigtails flying out behind her, and tackling the duck to the ground. He smiles again at the thought of it, then sighs softly. It was such a long time ago, and for all he knows, she probably doesn’t remember.

Tenko didn’t even recognize  _ him _ when they met in the simulation. 

The psychologist says, “Good! I’m glad we’re all becoming more open. There’s one other thing I’d like to inform you of, before we let out for today. When all fifteen of you are awake, your families will be allowed to come visit you!”

Uproar breaks out in the room. There’s overjoyed shouts from almost everyone, but Hoshi, Maki, and himself stay quiet. What the psychologist fails to inform them, is that Ouma is predicted to never wake from his coma, as the simulation had no way of accounting for the use of the hydraulic press.

It’s been nearly five months since the game ended, and six of them are still asleep. Saihara clutches his fist tightly, and tries not to think about his uncle, his uncle who willingly let him sign up for a reality show where he could have  _ died. _

Luckily, the psychologist lets them go before he can think too much. Saihara wonders why he comes here for two hours a week, because all it does is spike his anxiety and make him want to cry.

-

There’s a knock on Saihara’s door that night. He kicks off his now torn blanket, and opens the door, faking a yawn. 

“Can I come in?”

On the other side is Kaede, looking nervous and distressed. Saihara stares at her, all pretenses of sleep dropped, “Akamatsu-san? Is that you?”

Kaede looks at him, a haunted look in her eyes, “What do you think? Can I come in or not?”

Saihara moves his jaw uselessly, then nods and moves to let her inside.

Kaede looks into his eyes, something in her gaze making him nervous. He stares back at her, not sure what she’s trying to accomplish. Suddenly, her eyes begin to water, and she lunges at him.

She hugs him tightly around the shoulders, and cries. Saihara can’t really do anything besides awkwardly pat her lower back, as his arms are all but pinned to his side.

When she breaks the hug, she holds his wrists and looks him in the eyes again. She’s still crying, and she’s shaking in place, “S-S-Saihara-kun?” she whimpers.

Saihara replies, “I’m here. What’s wrong… can I help?”

Kaede closes her eyes, but tears still pour out, “I k-know I said that w-we shouldn’t be friends, and I know I’ve b-been avoiding you, but I r-really need a friend right now.”

“What about Harukawa-san?” Saihara says, then instantly regrets it.

Kaede mumbles, “Her and I w-weren’t friends in the simulation… I k-know we’re not the same people, but I know that y-you cared so m-much for me, even a-after I d-d-died.”

Saihara gently pulls one of his hands from her grip, and lightly strokes her face, “Do you want to talk? I’m here to listen to you.”

“I don’t w-want my father to s-see me,” Kaede whispers, “Not a-after I killed someone.”

Saihara says, “But you didn’t kill anyone! You were entirely innocent-”

“No I wasn’t!” Kaede shouts, “I still s-set up that trap! I’m just as much at fault as Shirogane…”

Saihara pulls her into a tight hug, “You’ve got that wrong. You were just trying to save everyone, and you’re  _ nothing _ like her.”

Kaede’s sobs become unintelligible. 

They sit on Saihara’s floor, occasionally talking about something - Angie’s new paintings or Himiko’s attempted magic tricks - anything but about their families. Kaede eventually falls asleep on his shoulder, her fingers intertwined with his own.

-

Spending time with Hoshi is easy, because neither of them really need to talk. Saihara reads, Hoshi brushes Yorick, and then can do this for hours without boredom.

One afternoon, Hoshi asks, “Hey… What happened to Kiibo? I’ve been meaning to ask.”

Saihara’s fingers go tight, “He… He sacrificed himself to end the game. He stopped Shirogane… he was the reason that any of us woke up.”

“Hmph,” Hoshi mutters, “Figures that he’d do something selfless.”

The conversation stops there, and Saihara doesn’t think anything more of it until a few days later, when a staff member arrives in his room, hands him a tablet, and then leaves without a single word. 

There's a sticky note on the tablet that reads  _ Share me _ . Saihara peels it off and shakes it to the floor, then sits on his mattress and turns it on. 

First, there's nothing but a pale green light. Then, Kiibo’s face appears on the screen, and Saihara throws the tablet. 

Luckily, it lands on the mattress, but Kiibo still yells out, and Saihara yells back. It takes a minute for them to stop, but even when Saihara manages to calm down, his heart still thumps like it’s come to pop out of his chest. He crawls towards the tablet and picks it up, his hands shaking.

Kiibo says, “Saihara-san? Is that you?”

“H-Hi,” Saihara says, “I’m sorry, I was startled.”

Kiibo smiles, “That’s fine! It’s wonderful to see you again! I wanted to contact the rest of you sooner, but I haven’t been allowed.”

Saihara raises an eyebrow, “You haven’t? Why not?”

Kiibo replies, “Copyright and disclosure reasons, according to the studio. But now that confidentiality has been dropped, I can speak to you all! How have you been doing, Saihara-san?”

Saihara stares blankly at Kiibo for a few seconds, unsure of how to respond, “I… don’t know.”

Kiibo says, “That is understandable. From what I can discern, this season caused more trauma than any of the producers could have ever expected.”

“The producers are  _ idiots,”  _ Saihara croaks, silent tears running down his face.

“Yes,” Kiibo says, “Yes they are.”

-

Amami wakes up on a quiet afternoon, in the midst of an  _ UNO _ tournament. Everyone is playing - sans Shirogane, who’s more of a cryptid than anything else now - even Maki and Hoshi, both of whom had to be heavily persuaded. Saihara isn’t sure who’s winning, but he’s having a surprising amount of fun.

Just as Gonta plays an evil  _ Draw Four _ card on Kaito - causing the latter to curse heavily - Kiibo’s tablet turns on.

“Wonderful news!” Kiibo declares, “Amami-san has awoken from his coma!”

There’s a generally pleasant consensus all around. None of them had reason to hate Amami, but none of them really had a chance to  _ know _ him all that well either.

Kaede’s fingers grip her cards so tightly that they turn white. Then she drops them on the floor and runs out of the room. Saihara calls out after her, but she doesn’t respond. 

Nobody says a word, or even moves a muscle, until Gonta grunts, “Red,” and Kaito begrudgingly draws four cards.

The game continues, but the lighthearted nature of it all has vanished, and Saihara excuses himself the second that Himiko claims victory.

-

When Amami was finally allowed visitors, Saihara had volunteered to go with her. Kaede however, had insisted that she go alone, saying that it was an apology that she had to make by herself.

Saihara had waited a day, just to be safe, and then gone to see Amami himself. If anyone looks like absolute shit, Amami is absolutely the worst. Hideous dark circles surround his eyes, mirroring Saihara’s own. Amami is also horrifically thin, as if he is a mere stick, wasting away.

His eyes flicker open for a moment, then almost instantly close again, “Hi…” he murmurs.

“Hey, Amami-kun,” Saihara replies, “It’s nice to see you again.”

Amami whispers, “We know each other? Huh… That’s what the girl said too.”

Saihara blinks, “Of course we know- ‘The girl?’ Do you mean Akamatsu-san?”

“Was that her name?” Amami asks, “I couldn’t tell you.”

Saihara stares at him, unsure of what to say next. Amami’s clearly delirious, and he sounds like he just swallowed a bag of rocks. He takes a step back, and looks around Amami’s barren hospital room, trying to find words that make sense.

Eventually, he says, “I’m Shuuichi Saihara. We were both on the fifty-third season of  _ Dangan Ronpa. _ Do you remember that?”

Amami groans, “N-No… I just… I can’t…”

Saihara says, “Listen, you should probably sleep. I’ll leave you be-”

“NO!” Amami screams, and violently shoots up. It’s only now that Saihara realizes that he isn’t restrained to his bed. Amami grabs his arm, and shakes him.

“W-What is it?” he asks.

Amami stares deep into his eyes, his expression wild, “You can’t leave me! You have to stay, you have to  _ stay! _ ”

Saihara tries to pull away, but the other boy has an iron grip.

“Don’t leave me!” Amami screeches, “ _ Don’t leave me like they did!” _

“I’m not going to-"

Amami screams louder, “DON’T LEAVE ME LIKE THEY DID!”

His screams turn to howls, as he holds onto Saihara’s wrist so hard that it begins to cut off the circulation. He tries to pull away, but all Amami does his tighten his hold.

Saihara doesn’t break away until a nurse bursts in and separates them. He scrambles backwards, clutching his bruised wrist, and fear growing in his eyes. Amami thrashes, and Saihara’s stomach churns, and he  _ runs and runs and runs away. _

He doesn’t go to see Amami again.


End file.
